Haj stampede death toll rises to 769
The death toll from a stampede during the annual Haj pilgrimage in Makkah earlier this week has risen to 769, Saudi Health Minister Khaled al-Falah said today.
A total of 934 others were injured in Thursday's tragedy, al-Falah told journalists in Riyadh.
Al-Falah said that while many bodies had been turned over to relatives for burial, many others as yet remained unidentified.
Thursday's crush in the holy town of Mina near Makkah was the haj's worst tragedy since 1990 when more than 1,400 pilgrims died in a stampede.
Today, thousands of pilgrims once again thronged the scene of the disaster to cast pebbles at three pillars in a ritual that symbolises resistance to the devil's temptations.
After disasters in previous years, the pillars are now built into a multi-storey structure designed to accommodate the huge numbers of pilgrims.
Saudi television showed crowds flowing relatively freely through the building and down its exit ramps.
Saudi civil defence authorities said observers had been positioned in all the passageways used by the exiting pilgrims to spot any signs of overcrowding.
Civil defence workers were also due to accompany departing pilgrims on the 5km journey back to Makkah.
There they will perform the final rite of the haj, walking around the cube-shaped Kaaba seven times in what is called the "farewell circumambulation" on Saturday and Sunday before leaving the holy city.
Saudi King Salman Abdulaziz ordered a safety review on Thursday, in the wake of the stampede.
The tragedy has triggered a blame game between rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran. The latter said at least 131 of its pilgrims died in the stampede.
Al-Falah suggested Thursday that the stampede had resulted from pilgrims' failure to observe instructions, but he did not name Iranians.
Around 1.9 million Muslims are participating in this year's haj, according to Saudi officials
- dpa
For more news and views that matter, subscribe and support independent media for only RM0.36 sen a day:
Subscribe now